The King's Folly
by blackwolf17
Summary: When Yusuke gets trapped in a dungeon in Demon World, he meets interesting demon. She's tough, mean, and has an interesting fascination with humans and half demons. What is her connection with King Yama and Spirit World? Will the gang get dragged into it?
1. Chapter 1: Trapped

_Hey, people! I finally have a story for you guys. There isn't a character biography for you and I'm not going to tell you what she is. You'll find that out in a later chapter. Anyways, for you people who don't like gore lots of gore don't read this. This will be rated T for teen so be warey. Just a warning. And I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho in any way, shape, or form, but I do own any new characters that come up. That means no stealingmy characters OR my ideas without consent. OK? Thanks! Please rate when your done. Thank You! Gives out cookies._

**Chapter One**

It was a warm day in Demon World, but Akai could only feel the burning of the iron on her exposed skin. By now, she had gotten used to it, not really caring if all the skin on her wrists was seared off or that she barely had gotten enough food that day to keep her alive. Her clothes hung in tatters around her slim form, dried blood crusted around her wrists and back from the lashings she got from the guards.

Her cell is barely livable. The floor is covered with rotten, stinking hay and wood chips. There are no windows in the small cell, making it dark and gloomy, but her eyes are used to the dark and she can see every stone along the walls and ceiling. Doubtless, she knows every single one by now. The only other thing in the room besides her and her chains is a small chamber pot in one corner that gives off an appalling stench. She scrunches up her nose and shifts on the stone floor.

She lay in a crumpled heap on the floor, wrapped tightly in a thin blanket, the only kindness she would get from these merciless guards, her black hair matted and tangled. Usually, she wouldn't mind the cold, her inner fire keeping her warm, but she has been here for almost five years now and that fire has greatly decreased both due to the iron shackles around her wrist and near starvation.

Hatred fills her when she looks back on that fateful day five years ago. That King Yama would surely pay for what he did to her. He took away her life, her home, and the only chance she had at being even remotely happy. For what? To secure his position as the ruler of Spirit World or to prove that he was the ultimate being and can never be challenged? Hell if she knew, but she wasn't about to give up just yet because as she lay here her charge, the one she swore to protect, was being held somewhere in Spirit World as a hostage, probably about to die herself. She had to get out of this dump and fast, but she couldn't, not when she was shackled to the wall making it almost impossible to walk let alone evade several guards at once.

A scowl crosses her face in frustration. There just had to be a way to get out of this damned-to-Hell dungeon.

Suddenly, The thick wooden door, that was the only way in and out of the stone cell, slammed open causing her to nearly jump. She stays still, her eyes closed, too tired and weak to make any sort of outburst that would earn her a lashing. A heavy thump sounds from across the cell as something heavy is thrown in with her. She cracks an eye open to see a man looking only to have seen fifteen years, his wrists shackled and his hair ragged and messy, and his eyes held a ferocious determination that brought a touch of respect and sympathy into her chest. She knows that once he's been here for a while that determination will fade and he'll be nothing but a lump of useless flesh.

"I'm sure you'll be quite comfy in here, half breed." The guard sneers and slams the door before he could make a retort. The mocking laughter of the guards can be heard as they walk down the corridor.

Then it hit her, the sweet, rich scent of his blood with a slight tang of demon. The very scent made her stomach rumble. Half breeds were a delicacy among her kind. Lucky for him she is chained to a wall across the cell, unable to even lay a claw on him. If it were any other way, she would have ripped him to shreds in seconds though her honor forbade it for he is in as much crap as she is. She closed her eye again and relaxed her muscles as much as she could.

The clanking of chains roused her from the little sleep she had as the man moved on the other side of the stone cell. She kept her eyes closed and listened as he moved from his original position. Evidently, he is moving toward the door. _Probably going to get himself killed._ She thinks and sighs inwardly at his stupidity.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." She says, still with her eyes closed. The man's chains clank loudly as he jumps in surprise.

"And why not?" He says that same determination in his eyes portrayed in his voice along with arrogance.

"Do you want to end up like me?" Akai retorts and sits up slowly, her iron chains barely making a sound. Her gold, slitted eyes pierce his, compelling him to sit down. "I'm chained to a wall and I have lash marks up and down my back. It isn't fun." She adds.

"Lashes?" He asks, confusion and a little fear in his voice and eyes.

"Flog marks, whip marks, welts, wounds. Whatever the hell you want to call it." She says with a slight shrug that pulls her wounds and makes them fester.

"They whip people?"

"Of course, most of the time it's just those who try to escape, raise a rebellion, or just plain talk back to them. One time, they took a guy, smeared him with bigs blood, chained his hands and feet, and threw him into a pit for the rats to feast on. You could hear the screams of agony for hours." She says,her lips twitching with the effort to hold back a smile of amusement as he turns pale.

"That's gross." He says with a shiver.

"Welcome to the Demon World, half breed. There are worse things done out there than what is done in the prisons."

"It's Yusuke."

"Hm?"

"My name is Yusuke, not half breed."

"Yusuke, huh? Just call me Akai." She replies and shifts her blanket around her shoulders to try and stave off the cold. She winces slightly when the iron rubs her seared wrists and starts to bleed again. She lifts it up to her mouth and licks off the blood, her saliva sealing over the wound to help it heal.

"That looks like it hurts." He comments upon seeing her bloodied wrists. She just shrugs it off as 'not so bad'.

Boot clicks echo outside in the hall making both their heads turn toward the sound. The small opening on the bottom of the door opens and a tray with two bowls of a disgusting looking, sloppy soup; two bowls of relatively clear, cool water; and two small loaves of hard, crusty bread. "Dinner time, bitches." A guard says and slams the door over the small opening.

Akai inches over to the tray, careful not to pull the wound on her back or damage her wrists any more. She picks up the bowl of soup, which appears to have a greenish tint to it, and slurps it down without tasting it and follows it up with the water. She grabs her loaf of bread and inches back to her place.

"You better eat, Yusuke. This is the only food your going to get until morning." She says, ripping off small chunks of bread and swallowing them.

"We're supposed to eat that?" He asks, disgusted.

"You should see the stuff they give the guys in solitary confinement. This stuff isn't so bad, once you get past the taste." She says with a shrug and another bite of bread.

He tentatively picks up the bowl of soup and sniffs it causing his expression to change to one of greater disgust. Yusuke quickly chugs it down then gags on the taste. He grabs the water and washes it down and coughs. He picks up his loaf of bread and moves back to his spot.

"You'll get used to it. Eat your bread, it'll save you from getting diarrhea." She says and finishes the last piece of her loaf. He looks at the bread and tears off a small piece that has mold on it and starts to eat the rest.

"What are you in here for anyways?" He asks bringing back the memories of the night she was taken.

"I got in the way of someone with a lot of influence and power." She says, giving the severely edited version. "I've been here for five years now." She adds.

"Five years? I would go crazy after just one day."

"Then let's hope something eventful happens. I'd hate to have a crazy person in my cell." She says with something akin to a smirk on her face. She rearranges her blanket and lays down using her arm as a pillow and begins to doze off. The last thing she heard before she drifts off to sleep is the clanking of chains as Yusuke settles in for the night.


	2. Chapter 2: Escaping

_Here's the next chapter for you guys! Hope you enjoy it. It's a little shorter than the last one, but still good. Again, I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho or any of their characters, but I do own my own characters and this plot line. Any usage without my consent will be frowned upon. Please rate well!! Gives everyone a cookie._

**Chapter Two**

The banging open of a cell door jostled her from her sleep and made her gold eyes snap open, the slitted pupils adjusting their size to the gloom of a morning in the dungeon. She looks at the door with out moving her head and sees a burley guard as he strides into the room toward the drowsy form of Yusuke.

"Come on half breed, the commander wants to question you." He says with a glare in her direction warning her not to move.

"What if I don't want to come?" He retorts, the arrogance form last night back in his voice.

"You'll come when the commander calls or be tied to the whipping posts." He snarls and grabs him by the arms and drags him up onto his feet. Yusuke struggles and tries to pull his arm away to no avail.

The guard ends up pulling his past her towards the door, but Yusuke makes his halt in his tracks as he tries to wrestle him forward making his right foot in front of her face. Akai's acute hearing picks up the jingling of keys on his belt over the commotion and a plan starts to form in her mind.

She bares her teeth in a smile, showing her sharply pointed canines. The guard's foot moves so his Achilles tendon is near her mouth. Quickly she reaches out with her neck and rips the back of his ankle, right at the Achilles tendon, with her teeth and pulls off a small chunk of flesh. The tang of demon blood floods her mouth as the screams of the guard fill her ears. She swallows the chunk of flesh, relishing the long forbidden taste, and smirks, her teeth covered in blood. "What the Hell?" She hears Yusuke say as the guard falls conveniently near enough for her to grab his keys. She quickly unlocks her shackles and lets them slip off her wrists with a happy sigh of relief.

The guard's screams have stopped by now, whether from lack of blood of from the poison on her teeth, she didn't know, but she wasn't about to stay around and find out. She staggers up, her strength returning after the iron shackles have been taken off, and quickly unlocks Yusuke's shackles.

A feeling of great urgency fills her as she hears the running of several guards coming down the corridor. She keeps hold of the keys and runs out of the small cell, that has been her home for the past five years, and grabs Yusuke's arm on the way past, dragging him with her.

They both stop dead in their tracks as three guards come down the hallway towards them. Akai snarls and charges them, gutting one with her talons, the blood spilling out of him at her feet, and tearing out the throat of another. Hearing his breath gurgle in his throat, she smiles. She quickly ducks to avoid a slash from the guard's double edged sword and comes in close to him, so his sword, that relies mostly on distance, will be ineffective. She thrusts her taloned hand into his chest and pulls out his heart, still beating. He crumples to the ground in a heap and is dead in seconds. She drops the heart next to him and continues down the hall. Yusuke following close behind, his pale face almost luminescent in the gloom of the torch lighted hallway.

The sound of more running guards fill her ears. Her mind turns over ideas in her head quickly and she stops in front of one of he many cells. She whips out the keys from her only whole pocket and shoves the skeleton key into the hole. She yanks it open fast and sees an emaciated man in the doorway looking completely perplexed. She shoves the keys into his hands and pulls him roughly out of his cell.

"Get everyone out of the cells and run for the door in the kitchen. Quickly!" She says and watches him scurry off to the other cells. His manner reminds her of a little mouse or rat meekly doing whatever anyone tells him. She shakes her head and moves on down the hall.

"What are you doing?" Yusuke asks coming up next to her.

"Creating a diversion so we can get out of here."

"Your letting criminals go free."

"Most of the people her are just unfortunates who got in the way of the demon overlord or didn't follow his rules. I doubt they did anything serious. Besides, the probability of most of them surviving is slim." She says and roughly pulls him into a darkened hallway as guards pass by them. She peeks her head out around the wall and watches as they turn around another corner heading towards the prisoner cells. She, still holding Yusuke's arm, dashes down the hall and runs into a room, slamming the door behind them.

"Where are we?" He asks in a whisper.

"The supply room. I need to get something." She replies in an equally soft voice and release him from her firm grip.

"I'm guessing you've done this before?" He asks, looking around the small storage room.

"Many times, but I stopped after about three times in solitary confinement. Now shush." She answers and goes over to the shelves, all of them stacked with boxes labeled with names. "Good thing they keep this organized." She mumbles to herself and pulls out a box and sets it on the only table in the small room. Inside was a folded black cloak still in good shape, a gold pendant with an engraving of a soaring eagle on it, and a sword belt complete with sheathed sword. She grabs all of these, throwing the cloak over her shoulders and around her battered and bruised body, the necklace she puts around her neck, and the sword belt she straps tightly around her skinny waste. She smirks at Yusuke and strides to the door, a new sort of confidence in her step, and opens it a crack. She peeks her head out into the torch lighted hall. Seeing that it was all clear, Akai and Yusuke dash down the hall, her worn and dirty leather boots slapping against the stone.

She keeps her ears and eyes open for anything and hears the tramping of boots on the stone floor down the hall. She mentally curses and turns down another dimly lit hall and up some narrow stone steps. At the top of the stairs is a thick wooden door, much like the ones leading into the cells. She pushes it open, the hinges protesting their usage slightly, and goes quickly down the next hallway.

"Do you know where your going?" Yusuke asks, a little out of breath.

"Mostly." she responds.

"That just makes me feel so much better." He says sarcastically.

"Shut up. If I knew you were going to complain, I would have left you in the cell." She growls and he shuts up.

Suddenly a group of guards round the corner right in front of them making them stop dead in their tracks. The guards pull out their swords, some slapping the flat side against their hands, and stand ready to fight them. Akai's lips curl up in frustration, knowing she doesn't have enough strength left to fight all of them. Her eyes shift back and forth looking for a way out through the shadows. She finally spots a window and grabs Yusukes tightly by the arm and pulls him against her. She leaps for the window and, shielding their faces, crashes through into the fresh air of morning.

They plummet through he air down a sheer cliff face, the rock littered sea comming closer. She grabs and holds Yusuke closer, making sure he doesn't slip out of her grasp. His wailing of "We're going to die!" reach her ears over the whistle of the wind past her ears. Grey smoke drifts from her back and elongates. The wind carries it away leaving behind two crimson red, leathery wings. They catch the wind and jerk them both up and over the roiling sea in mere second before impact. She pumps her wings, feeling the ache in her back muscles from unuse. They sore into the graying clouds and away from the castle-like dungeon that has been her home for the past five years courtesy of King Yama.


	3. Chapter 3: traveling

_Hey people, I know it's been a really long time, but here's chapter three. I hope you like it. _**  
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**Chapter Three**

"You can open your eyes now, Yusuke." Akai says, close to his ear.

He cracks one eye open to see the blue sky above him and her crimson red wings pumping the air in a steady rhythm. "We're not dead?" He asks, shock and relief coating his tone.

"No, we're not dead. Though we will be soon if I don't find a portal. I don't know how long I can fly like this. You're heavier than you look, ya know."

"Gee, thanks...You have wings?"

"Yes, I do. Why, am I not allowed to have them?

"No, I just didn't know."

"I know." She says, her tone ending the discussion. She gently banks to the right, putting a forest below them. The trees are a dark green and twist around each other, each vying for some scrap of sunlight.

Silently she sends out her senses and tries to find the nearest portal. After a while of back-aching flight, her mind brushes against one. Her mouth twitches up in a half smile and she gently banks to the right heading for the portal.

Her back starts to burn and her arms start to ache as she continues her flight. She is definitely no longer in the shape needed for this type of thing. The five years being couped up in that small jail cell took a lot out of her, but she isn't going to give up now. She is doing this for her charge and for revenge on the one man who started all of this, King Yama. He deserves a real taste of hell and she will be the one to give it to him even if she has to rip the ground out from under him to do it. People who mess with her kind and their charges wind up getting their lives cut short.

But there is time to plot King Yama's imminent demise later. Right now, she has to get this boy to the Human World, and then get her charge out of the hands of the Spirit World. Akai has to focus on getting out of here and that isn't going to happen if she sprained a muscle in her back, so she decided to set down somewhere and walk the rest of the way to the portal.

"We're setting down in the forest. We'll walk the rest of the way to the portal." She says curtly to the young man in her arms. He agrees through a quick nod, still not liking the idea of the only thing keeping him from falling is two arms belonging to a woman who a minute ago ruthlessly killed four guards with just her bear hands. He must be glad to be setting down in the forest and be away from this scary woman.

Slowly she descends into the trees, trying to gain as much ground as she can before setting down. She descends through the trees, avoiding all of he branches that she can, but one clips her wing and sends them both tumbling to the ground, ending with her sprawled out on the ground with Yusuke on top of her. She roughly pushes him off with a grunt and rolls over onto her hands and knees. Her back muscles burn as she flexes her wings. Slowly, the same mist from before envelopes them and returns back into her body. She pushes herself up onto her feet, her muscles protesting all the while. _Dammit._ She thinks and turns to look at Yusuke, also back on his feet.

"OK, let's getting going. We have a while to walk before we reach the portal." She states and turns to start walking through the forest.

"Wait. Where are we going?" He asks.

"Straight ahead."

"How do you know?"

"I just do. Now, are you coming or are you going to stand around and become demon fodder." Akai says, and treks on with Yusuke following behind.

She knows she isn't going to get far in the state she's in, but she has to try. She doubts anyone would mess with them while she's around, but she isn't going to take any chances. They have to get to the portal before night fall. Already her legs are starting to hurt, especially her ankles, as the shackle wounds start to fester, but she walks on.

"Hey, can I ask you a question?" Yusuke asks, walking up beside her.

"Ask away."

"Exactly what type of demon are you? I mean, you have wings, you kill people with your bare hands, and eat flesh. It seems kind of weird to me. Why are you helping me anyway?"

"Let me just say this, I'm a very powerful demon that is very old, older than even Koenma. As to why I'm helping you, a simple half breed, well, let's just say I felt sorry for you to some extent. After this, Yusuke, you'll owe me big time, and I do and will collect my debts in due coarse." She says, looking over at the young man beside her. She doesn't know whether this boy would be of any use to her, but perhaps she could think up some debt for her to collect. Though there is something strange about this boy that just nags at her thoughts. Half breeds are supposed to be weaklings with a very small amount of demon energy, but this boy has a substantial amount of spirit energy, and a very latent, but strong amount of demon energy. This boy, he is not as he seems. She will have to be careful around him, though how he could defeat one of her kind is not evident, but she wasn't about to tempt fate. "And what of you, boy, what was your reason for being thrown into that hell hole?" Akai asks, not looking directly at him, but instead looking around the forest.

"I was on a mission for my boss, when I got captured and thrown in there." Yusuke answers, obviously holding back, which makes her curious. What kind of mission would a boy of his age be engaged in? Perhaps she will know in due time, but now she isn't that worried about it.

Now, they just have to survive this forest and get to the Human World, but they aren't going to survive if she is this weak. She looks around for any plant that might be of use to her, but she finds none whatsoever. All medicinal plants seem to have been taken over or killed by the trees and other plants in this dark side of Demon World. This isn't good. If she continues to become weaker, she will never be able to get her charge out of Spirit World. She's going to have to board up for the night somewhere, but that would mean that she would be indebted to someone, and she really didn't like that idea.

But then again, if she had this boy's full name, that would mean he would have to do what she told him to. That would mean that she could ask for food and a place to sleep and he would have to comply without argument. She smiles to herself and congratulates herself for thinking up such a lovely plan. Surely this simpleton boy would not know of the power of names, for it goes back to the very beginning of magic itself, and now only a few strong wielders of magic can use this ancient technique.

She turns her head to look at Yusuke and asks him without a hint to what she was planning on her face or voice, "Tell, me Yusuke, what is your full name?"

"Why?" He asks, not really suspecting anything at the moment.

"I'm just curious." She lies, no telltale gestures or twitches that might give her away showing.

"Oh, well, it's Urameshi Yusuke." He answers, his name thrums with power in her bones, making a connection between them that she could control.

"Urameshi Yusuke, huh." _And now that we have created a bond Urameshi Yusuke, I can sense your energy fully. Undoubtedly you have demon in you, perhaps too much for your own good. _ She thinks, looking strait at him.

She turns away to watch her footing among the tangled roots of the trees. They trekked through the forest for a while, Akai's ears always open to any movement or sound that might portray any danger.

"How long is it until we reach the portal?" He asks, hiking along beside her.

"About another..." She starts to say, then stops and holds up a hand for him to be silent. Her ears catch a rustle in the tree tops, and, without moving her head, she looks around her and catches a slight silver gleam and a black shadow moving around in the trees. Slowly, she inhales the air around her and silently curses.

"What is it?" Yusuke asks beside her, shifting the positions of his hands until it looks like he's ready for an attack.

"Stay very still, Yusuke and don't make a sound." She replies, her mouth barely moving. Slowly, she moves her hand to her waist and grasps the hilt of her sword, ready to fight against this demon.

A sinister laughing comes from up in the treetops, causing them both to look that way. "Do you really think you can take me on in the state you are in?" The demon says, its voice high pitched and straining on the ears.

"Don't underestimate me and the boy, demon. Come down and face us, and we'll show you what we can do." She taunts and watches as it shifts in the trees, looking like it was debating whether or not to take them on. "Well, are you scared?"

"Hardly." It says, causing her to look behind her. A silver glimmer catches her eye and seems to be moving faster towards her. She silently curses for being so weak she was caught off guard and draws her sword quickly. She turns while drawing it and slashes at the silvery substance. As it comes in contact with the substance, it bursts into flames. Again and again she slashes at the silvery substance, which she now has figured out is spider thread, and again and again they bursts into flames.

And echoing yell resounds from behind her calling, "Spirit Gun!" She turns her head slightly to the sight to see a great ball of blue spirit energy go flying into the trees, lighting up the forest around them. It crashes into the trees, destroying many and leaving a path of destruction. _Hmm, so he can control it, but that isn't much of a surprise. What's more disturbing is his attack. Where in the name of hell did he learn that?_ She thinks, but quickly turns her attention back to the silvery spider thread flying at her from all directions.

Quickly she spins around in a circle, wielding her sword before her, making the thread all around her burst into flames again. She comes to a stop and slams her sword, point first, into the ground. The ground around her bursts into flames and consumes the last of the spider thread. She then head over to where Yusuke is and looks around for the spider demon, but she doesn't catch any glimpse of it.

"Where the hell did it go?" He asks scanning the trees and surrounding area.

"I don't know, but it's here. I know it is. Damn bug infested forest. This is just what I need right now." She growls with sarcasm sparking in her voice, sending her senses outward in order to better have a chance of finding it. Her mind brushes against something relatively close by and she turns to face it, her gold, slitted eyes piercing through the bleakness of the forest. Her grip tightens on the hilt of her sword as she gets ready to attack. It wouldn't be long now until she runs out of energy and would need to rely on the half breed for assistance.

Just then, the demon bursts out of the cover of the trees, charging straight towards them. They both have just enough time to jump out of the way of its teeth and thread before he catches them. Akai slides to a stop and grips her sword in both hands, getting in a fighting stance. The demon turns for another charge, but gets hit by a barrage of energy balls as Yusuke shouts, "Shot gun!". The demon goes flying back and crashes through the trees after letting out a pain-filled scream.

_Well, this is just getting more interesting by the minute. Now, who taught you that attack? There is only one person who could have the experience needed to teach you that._ She thinks, watching the boy closely as he lowers his arm and walks toward where the demon fell.

Still holding her sword, she follows behind him. The rank odor of pain and fear mix in with the sweet scent of demon blood so much so that it was almost unbearable. The bushes and long grass of the forest rustles with the demon's death thrashes and she heads for the sound. Her fingers tighten, white-knuckled, around the sword hilt as she comes upon the prone form of the spider demon. His eyes stare wide-eyed at her emotionless face as she moves past Yusuke to stand next to the demon. With out even flinching, she raised her sword and brings it down in a flash right into his heart. Blood pools around her feet as his body slowly stops thrashing and becomes still. She yanks out her sword, wipes it off on the grass, sheaths it, and turns to leave. Yusuke stares after her, disbelief showing on his face.

Akai turns her head to look back at him. "Well are you coming?"


End file.
